The Beginning
by kelskels772
Summary: Tina never could have imagined the series of events that would lead to her old life being thrown away and a new life of adventure and hardship that would follow her and her dragon.
1. Preface

**The Beginning - Preface**

The Continent of Morina was divided. Elves, Dwarves, Man, and Dragons lived in Morina but there was never peace. Each country was ruled by a single Monarch and there was war. Each race would not bow and wanted all for their own. Over time the land was ravaged and a struggle for power throughout Morina almost destroyed all. The inhabitants fearing the creator and what would happen upon the gods return created a council to govern over the monarchs so the countries could all exist in harmony. They council was made up of five elders from each country and finally put an end to the great continental war. There was peace. The land flourished and all seemed to be well. Till a single monarch began to covet power. The monarch, Maenadic, began to dabble in dark arts and as his hunger for power grew he was overthrown and vowed vengeance. He then fled to the north and began summoning a dark twisted race known as Dicars. These creatures were born from the twisting of animals in the mountains and dead humans. The council feared as the Dicars and their master Maenadic moved from the mountains and began to destroy the villages along the mountain side. The council convened and tried to come up with a plan that would allow them to defeat Maenadic. One of the elders suggested that they look to the dragons for help. There arose the problem. The dragons had chosen to live away from the civilizations but had chosen, in the past, to ignore the call for help. The council all agreed that this was the only option for a swift victory. A handful of elders and 13 chosen warriors journeyed to the dragon waste land.

"Mighty dragons of old! We are in dire need of assistance in our battle against evil. Magicians and warriors are not enough to defeat our foe. We call upon you to answer our call and to help us in this war."

After an hour of silence the elders began to think that they would never respond. Overhead a shadow appeared over the wasteland. As the shadow sharpened they could see there were 13 dragons flying towards them. They swooped down, landing before the elders.

"Thank you for coming to our aid. All is almost lost."

A dragon came forth from the group and strode forward toward the Men, Dwarves, and Elves before them. The dragon gazed upon the group before him. He moved forward and came to the head warrior, chosen to protect the elders. The dragon bent down his head and the man reached out and placed his hand on the head of the dragon. When the man touched the dragon he heard a great voice resound in his head.

"I am Gin. I have been chosen by the ancient dragons, along with these others, to help you in your battle against the evil Maenadic. All of us have been bestowed the communication necessary to talk to your warriors, but this connection is only between one individual and one dragon and can not be removed till death."

Astonished the man could not think of what he should say. Finally after moments of thought he replied.

"I am Arthur Atmen. I have no words to express my gratitude for your actions."

"Please relay my message to the elders and let them know that we wish to leave immediately. We have much to teach your riders before they will be ready for battle."

As the dragons and warriors began to establish their connections, they began to realize that this bond was not just to communicate. They could share anything they desired. The elders created the title of sky knight for this band of warriors and dragons.

Together the Sky Knights began to put an end to the war and stopped the Dicars advance. Arthur Atmen was chosen to lead the attack against Maenadic. He and his dragon Gin commanded the group of 12 Sky Knights and headed on their mission to the destroy Maenadic and to hopefully put a stop to him before the joint army had to step in. Maenadic was defeated atop of the mountain fortress Gua along the coast of Cosaco. The mission took the lives of six history of all that occurred atop the mountain was lost years after that great battle. The seven knights that survived returned to the dragon waste land and made a treaty with the dragons. This treaty allowed for 8 dragon hatchlings to be sent to each country. Through the years each country was only allowed eight, no more, no less. 2000 years later the kingdoms were still at peace and there was great prosperity in the continent of Morina.

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><p>This is my very first work. More will be posted as I edit. Enjoy!<p> 


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**Capital City, Lan**

Atop the balcony of the grand tower in the sky capital city, Lan, the monarch Christopher Malaya surveyed night sky and the land he had ruled for over a decade. His land had been at peace during this time, but there were still conflicts that had begun to appear. Though the monarch had troubles on his mind, his main thoughts were heavy on the problem at hand; he had no child. His wife had died two weeks ago and they were never able to produce a child. He had little hope left. His half-brother Maylek had fought for the throne since their father had been slain in an incursion with bandits and he now had a chance to take the throne if another direct heir could not be found. He hung his head as the rain began to fall. Soon a rasp on the door drew his attention.

"Enter" stated Christopher as he withdrew to the cover of his room. The door opened and his most loyal Sky Knight, Philip Resium, entered and bowed.

"I have great news, my lord."

"What is it, Philip?" Philip replied with haste,

"The scholars have discovered what we have searched for. It seems the child is in the town of Tempo four days north of here."

As Christopher heard this he was overtaken with joy and dread. After a moment of thought he finally spoke

"Does Maylek know of the child?"

"Net yet, my lord, but I believe it will only be a matter of time."

"Then we must hurry. Prepare a handful of sky dragons and go at once to retrieve the child before any harm is done."

"Yes, my lord!"

With a quick bow Philip was off to rally the riders and retrieve the child. Unknown to the child, she soon would be rushed into a world of turmoil and strife.

**Tempo**

All Tina could see was herself falling towards the earth. The rain, wind, and clouds whipped around her; the fear of death raced through her mind as she fell, not even her screams could be heard over the wind and rain. Tina struggled to find something to stop this plummet to her death, but there was nothing. Time suddenly seemed to slow and all she could hear a heavy constant thud in her head.

Tina woke from her nightmare and bolted out of bed.

_I'm 22 and I still get the worst nightmares_, she thought as she glanced at the clock. It was only four in the morning. Tina walked to the bathroom and splashed cold water onto her golden tanned skin. Growing up she had always loved to be outside and since she always been outdoors she had achieved a permanent tan that most would envy. She never really cared about her looks as others did. Pulling back her bed head she brushed her teeth and washed her face. Her bright blue eyes gazed into the mirror as the nightmare, still fresh on her mind, caused her to lean back on the wall near the sink and let out a long sigh. Tina allowed her long, dark brown hair to fall softy to her chest. Tina's hair had always bugged her but she could never bring herself to cut it off. Her hair had always been her mother's pride and joy. Tina let go of her thought and made her way to the shower. Fifteen minutes later she headed to the closet to dress for work. After donning a pair of jeans and a simple gray long sleeved shirt, she brushed her long hair back into a braid and made her way down the spiral stairs to the kitchen below.

Tina had always lived in the same house just outside the town of Tempo, in the county of Arika. The house was owned by her family in the past and she was the only one left to care for the place. The house itself was built by her great, great grandfather, Ryan, and was a simple two story house with little space to live. Tina slowly made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen. Looking down near the stove Tina found her two large, black, hybrid wolves, Lucky and JoJo, sleeping on the floor. She knelt down by the two and petted them saying

"Hey there, did you two miss me?"

A smile spread over her face as Lucky licked her check. Tina walked to the counter and made herself a cup of coffee. Leaning up against the counter Tina looked into the parlor connected to the kitchen. The parlor was slightly larger than the kitchen but held a few comfy chairs and one sofa. The room itself was well-lit and decorated in an outdated floral pattern that Tina's Grandmother, Kate, had insisted on putting up in almost every room in the house. To everyone the families delight she was only allowed to put it up in the parlor. Tina's stomach began to grumble.

"I should get something to eat before I go" she said as went to the cupboard and made herself a bowl of porridge.

A small whine escaped from Lucky's mouth as he stared up at Tina, wondering when he was going to get his breakfast before work. Tina grinned and proceeded to get the food for Lucky and JoJo as her porridge cooked on the stove. The two dogs gulped down the food with such joy that caused Tina to laugh out loud. Tina finished her meal and walked to the sink depositing the empty bowl into the warm water. She walked to the door and slid on her mid calf work boots. Tina tied her boot and walked to the closet to retrieve her coat. Tina looked around the house and the memories of the family she once had flooded into her mind. She shook her head

"Come on, lets' go Lucky, JoJo".

With her companions by her side the three and headed out the door and to work.

**The Job**

Tina's job had taking up most of her time, but she had enjoyed every moment of it. She had been hired at a few years back to help a man named Luke Matthews find Flairbirds for the sky cities. The Flairbird is a beautiful feathered creature with large wings that are rarely used to fly, long wispy tails, and two strong back legs for running. They were slightly larger than a horse and were common in the country areas of Morina. Though the Flairbird were more common traveling animals they are difficult to find at a young age for training purposes. Tina's job was to find them and take them to the training farm so they could be trained to carry riders, packages, and races. Lucky and JoJo had been raised to track the Flairbirds. The four of them spent most of the day in the fields looking for them. Tina mounted her Flairbird May and began to head toward the training farm with Luck and JoJo following behind. The training farm was only about 30 minutes from Tina's place and after a quick stop in town they approached Luke's house. Luke came out of the house and leaned up against the post of the porch. Tina dismounted as Luke spoke,

"Tina… Your late, again."

"Hey Luke, when have I ever been on time."

Luke shook his head. He was tall with blond hair, brown eyes, and a shaggy beard. He had started running this farm since his dad had left it to him when he passed away 3 years before. Though Luke was only 27 he ran the farm very well. Without any delay Luke got right down to business,

"We have much to do today. I want to get a head start for one of our major clients."

Luke and Tina headed to feed the Flairbirds that had been in the barn. As she helped Luke with the feeding and with cleaning up Luke explained more about what the clients needed and wanted them to look for.

"A merchant named Mitchell called earlier this morning with a very specific type/color of Flairbird he was looking for and he needs at least eight of them. He wants them to be faster and needs better agility than the last Flairbirds we sent him. I have been given a good amount for each."

"I have no doubt we can find them if we look near the edge of the forest of Kura. Though it is a day's journey, I believe that it will be worth the extra amount of effort."

"I agree. I already had Mark prepare Lue for the journey. Oh, My sister has a change of clothes that she left in the house, before she got married, so you don't have to go back to your house."

"Wow someone is actually thinking ahead" She laughed.

Luke left the barn and headed to the sheds to pack their supplies for the long trip. Tina went into the house and made her way down the hall towards Maria's bedroom. Maria and Tina had grown up together and when they were young they were inseparable. Maria had married a traveling merchant and had moved away 2 years ago. Tina grabbed a change of clothes and packed them into her backpack. Tina packed her bag into the saddle bag and Luke packed all the other equipment in Lue's bag; they double checked everything and Luke told his head worker, Mark, all that needed to be done while he was away. Within five minutes Luke, Tina, Lucky and JoJo were on the road. The trip lasted for the whole day and they arrived at the cabin, around sunset, near the edge of the woods.

"Tina why don't you get things settled while I unload the things we need from the Lue and May."

Tina went into the cabin and began preparing dinner and cleaning up a few things before Luke came in. They used this cabin often for scouting trips as well as for when they came to collect. Dinner was ready just in time as Luke walked in.

"Something smells amazing."

Tina Blushed. Luke rarely ever gave out compliments and when he did she knew that he really meant it. After dinner and cleaning the dishes Luke walked one of the beds in the corner and flopped down on the bed.

"We should get some sleep. We will leave early so we can get Lu and May ready."

Tina went to the one bed room and soon was fast asleep. The nightmare came again, but this time it was different. There was a voice. It was soft and calming. It washed over Tina like a gentle wave upon the sand. "I will always catch you." Tina gently woke to the wonderous smell of coffee. She quickly changed and headed into the kitchen. Luke was at the table with a map circling the areas they would be heading to.

"We have covered most of this area last year, but I think that we will find a heard in the central woods about an hour from here."

Tina sipped on her coffee and grabbed a bisque from the counter.

"Would you hurry!"

Tina swallowed her coffee, and grabbed her bag from the bed and together they walked to the open fields near the cabin. Tina spotted May and Lu lying under a tall tree near the middle of the field.

These two Flairbirds were the best in the country. Lu was a three-year old, beautiful red flairbird and was known for her great speed. Because of her talent she was one of Luke's favorite and received much attention from him.

Lu suddenly raised her head and looked around as if there was danger. Lu then spied Luke and Tina at the edge of the field. She rose up and shook her feathers, then began to run towards the two. She halted right before she trampled the two. Lu lowered her head and touched Luke's forehead in greeting.

"Good girl Lu. Are you ready to find some friends."

Luke looked over to Tina

"I'll go get the saddles while you fetch your lazy May."

There was only one reason she had her name and that was because she was stubborn and sometimes lazy. May was one of Luke's older Flairbird and was the smartest of them all. He had given her to Tina when she started working on the farm and Tina soon discovered that May had a great talent of always opening the gates, steal the food, run off when she had felt bored, and even found a way to shake off her saddle when she had the chance. Though May could be a pain in the butt, Tina enjoyed ridding her and May never gave Tina any problems, so far. She began walking to the May when a shiver came down her spine. Something didn't feel right. She looked around, seeing nothing she went about her business, not knowing that soon she would be in great danger.

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><p>Well here is chapter 1. Please enjoy!<p> 


	3. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

_I will take my best riders and make my way north toward Tempo. We will have to travel fast seeing as it is a day by dragon. I will leave Leon and Rin here to continue the training._

Philip thought as he made his way down the hall from the Monarchs chamber. He picked up his pace as he neared the end of the hall. He turned the corner and saw two riders, a smaller woman and a man, walking the opposite direction as Philip.

"Naylon. Ryan." They turned and saluted Philip as he came to a stop in front of them.

"We have a mission from the Monarch. Gather Mitchelle, Derick, and James, then meet in the briefing room."

Naylon spoke, "Is there danger?"

"Not yet. I will explain more when the others are ready, but prepare for everything."

The two nodded and ran down the hall towards the rider's citadel. The rider's citadel and platform had been a large set of tower that had be created for the riders to train and to live. This was located on Pier 6. Philip then turned the opposite direction and headed to his room to gather his sword. As Philip came to his room a figure stepped out from the darkness.

"Why the hurry Philip?"

Philip turned ready to face the intruder, but quickly realized who stood before him. Philip straightened and gave a quick bow.

"I have important business to attend to Lord Maylek"

With an irry smile he replied, "What business would that be Philip?"

"The Monarchs business my Lord. You know that means I cannot disclose important information till told otherwise. I apologize but I must leave immediately."

With a look of disgust Maylek said, "Beware Philip. The world is a scary place. We would not want anything to happen before you finish your business."

"Of course, sir."

With that Maylek turned and walked off into the darkness. Philip let out a sigh and entered his room. He gathered his backpack from underneath the bed and his battle sword. As he was about to leave he glanced down at the picture, sitting by the couch, of what was once a happy family.

"I am headed out Father, mother, Mary; I have an important mission… I will not let the Monarch down. I will bring her safely here."

Philip opened the door and strode into the hall. As the door closed red eyes appeared as if from nowhere and soon emerged a woman fully cloaked in the darkness. The woman picked up the picture and spoke in a snakelike whisper as she traced her finger over the glass.

"I wonder what he will do about this news."

She dropped the picture to the floor and walked to the window as the picture crashed to the floor and glass shattered into millions of pieces. She pulled the widow open and disappeared into the night sky.

Philip exited the fortress and began walking down the bridge towards the dragon's citadel. Philip descended down the bridge and through the security gate then into the dragons citadel. Pier 6 had been specifically made for the dragon's citadel and was located on the edge of Pier 6 and had various living areas for all the dragons, a launching platform, and living quarters for all Sky Knights who were not required to live in the central fortress. Phillip walked down the stairs and into a hall. He made his way down the hall and into the briefing room. He saw his riders sitting around the center table waiting for him. He walked into the room and the riders stood at attention.

"Please sit. We have a lot to discuss and very little time."

A large man with long, scraggly red hair and braided beard was the first to speak up.

"What has happened captain?"

Philip walked around the table and stood at the head. He laid his sword on the table

"I'll explain more in the air, but we are being sent by the Monarch to escort a child here. Mitchell, I am going to need you to gather maps and info on the area before we leave."

Mitchell stood and walked out of the room into the hall.

"Finn, I am going to need you to go the magicians building and have a mage make communication stones for this trip and have him send one to the Monarch."

A young half-elf man stood up from the table. He was as beautiful as any elf but a bit shorter in size. He had shoulder length bright, blonde hair, green eyes, and was a graceful with every step he made as he left.

"Naylon, Ryan, will you two prepare the dragons for takeoff and make sure all the gear is ready to go in 20 min."

Another young half-elf stood, she looked exactly like Finn due to them being twins, but had a more agile appearance. She had long bright, blonde hair and silver eyes. She glided around the table and took the hand of the other man, Ryan. He was the largest of all the riders and towered above the Naylon, but he never spoke to any other person, besides Naylon. He was very muscular, with short black hair, and dark brown eyes. Naylon reached up and kissed him then turned to Philip saying,

"Do you want us to saddle the dragons or should everyone do it themselves"

"Just bring the gear and call the dragons down to the platform, everyone can saddle up there"

Naylon and Ryan turned and walked into the hall. They had been married for only three months. Philip hated to pull both of them on this mission, but they were great assets to his team.

"Now that everyone is working we can just relax, right boss?" This voice annoyed Philip to death. He turned to address the speaker.

"Derick, relaxing with you around is impossible."

"Well you never give me anything else to do, but studying." He said with a cocky smile

Derick had been a newer member of their team, but was more cocky than all other knight and this made Philip so frustrated at times. Derick was a very handsome looking man, with purple eyes, and light brown curly hair that took him hours to fix. He was Philips least favorite Knight, but excelled at air combat. Suddenly an older man smacked Derick on the top of the head and began to walk towards the door while saying,

"You already know what you need to do, Derick. Gather the others pack and bring all of them down to the platform." Derick sat there rubbing his head.

"Why did you have to do that James?"

"You were being rude and annoying so I intervened on Philip's behalf."

Philip stepped in saying,

"James is right. Go do your job so we can leave on time."

"Yes Sir. At least I get to go." Derick said in an angry tone. He walk out of the room and continued to rub his aching head.

James rose from his chair and walked to the edge of the table and sat on the edge of the table next to Philip.

"You know the youngsters just want to see some action."

"But will they be ready for whats ahead of them. You are the oldest of the Sky Knights and you should know that action is not always what a new knight needs."

"I know, but you just need to have patience." With these words James rose and walked out of the room.

Philip pondered James words then grabbed his sword and belted it as he walked down the hall and into the weapon room. He saw that the Sky Knights had already taken their weapons: Mitchell's hammer, Finn's twin thin blades, Naylon's knuckle swords, Ryan's large war axe, Derick's bow and arrows, and James broad sword. They all knew this would be a difficult journey and they had chosen the weapons that they had been specifically trained in. The door closed behind Philip as he walked from the weapon room and into the open air of the riders platform. The citadel platform was a wide open strip where Sky Knights and dragons launch from and prepared for battles/missions. Philip walked along the platform allowing the wind to whip through his hair. He glanced around and saw six dragons and riders ready for launch. The dragons all lay behind the sky knights waiting for Philips instructions. Behind Mitchell was a bright red dragon with a very long muscular body and a spiked tail. This dragon was Shar and had been given to Mitchell 10 years ago. Next to Shar lay a dark green dragon, with Finn sitting on the dragon's knee, which was smaller than Shar in size but just as long, her name was Fay. Due to her small size she was an amazing flyer and she, along with her rider, acquired the nickname mirror. Derick was putting his pack on a honey colored dragon, named Rin, that was about the size of Shar. The largest of all the dragons was twice the size of a normal dragon and was Naylon's dragon. This great silver dragon was named Nu and also carried Ryan as well as Naylon. Ryan never had a dragon but was still considered a member of the Sky Knights and therefore rode with Naylon (even before their marriage). James was already on his dragon Seig. Seig was dark blue and was the youngest dragon of the Sky Knights, but was ridden by James because its rider had yet to be chosen. The last dragon was Philips dragon, Drie. It was a white dragon and was the oldest of all the dragons in his group. Philip and Drie had been connected for 20 years and had been inseparable until a few months ago when Philip began to live in the Monarchs keep. Philip walked to the group and began to relay flight patterns for the group and other instructions.

"Mitchell and Shar will take point and scout 2 miles ahead of the group. Finn and Fay will take the left flank and will be followed by Derick and Rin. Questions?"

Derick was about to speak when Rin stooped down her neck picked him up before he could say a word. She let lose a playful growl and Derick quickly shut his mouth and listened as Rin scolded him for not listening in the first place.

"Fine I will behave" Rin set him down and Derick plopped onto the ground muttering under his breath.

Philip smiled. Rin was like Derick's mother in the way that she had always kept Derick in line so he wouldn't do something stupid.

"James and Seig will take right flank followed by Naylon, Ryan, and Nu. Drie and I will direct the group from the middle and relay the directions through the stones."

Each rider nodded in agreement and mounted upon their dragons. Mitchell was the first to take off and began his job of scouting ahead. Fay and Rin were in the air and waiting for the others to arrive. Seig and Nu began to rise from the citadel platform and were soon in their place. Philip mounted and soon he and Drie were in the air. Philip looked toward the high tower. Monarch Christopher stood on the balcony and gave a subtle nod. Philip turned back towards his fellow Sky Knights and said.

"Move out"


	4. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

"Can you tighten May's strap while I get my bag"

"Sure Luke. Do you need me to grab anything else or do you have everything."

"I have everything already in Lu's saddle bag."

Tina tightened the strap and mounted up and waited for Luke to grab his coat from the cabin. The woods around the cabin were beautiful and full of life all around them. Luke exited the cabin and mounted.

"We will head North and stop about twenty miles from here to check in on last years herd that we spotted and see if they have any we are looking for."

Luke urged Lu forward and into a run with Tina and May right behind them. As soon as they got to the right speed they took off in a low flight across the ground. Flairbirds could fly but they flew close to the ground and would not go higher than the top of the trees. Flairbirds were mostly running animals. They finally reached the woods and landed in the field. Many animals chose not to reside in the woods by to travel through in order to get to the lake north of the woods. As Luke approached the tree line of the woods he whistled for Lu and May to flank him. Luke has specially trained these two to respond to whistles while in the woods. They headed into the woods in search of the Flairbirds. Luke motioned for her to move right, towards the thick part of the woods. After a few minutes a whistle sounded west of her location. This meant that Luke had found the herd. Another whistle sounded and this meant that he was going to drive them her direction. She signaled her position by whistling and readied her ropes to catch them as they approached. The wind blew through the trees and rustled the branches ad she waited patiently.

"Stick close Lucky."

Another minute passed and Lucky perked up his ears signaling that they were about to have company. The ground began to shake as the herd neared them. The first Flairbird broke through the trees and it was one of the ones Luke wanted. Tina quickly moved May forward while she roped the animal and on she went. After a good 30 minutes she had roped 5 Flairbirds and made her way to the rondevu point and saw Luke with 7 Flairbirds fenced in a makeshift coral they had set up years before. She maneuvered the animals into the pen and roped them to the side.

"Such a show off." She said as she walked towards Luke

"You will learn eventually."

A huge gust of wind knocked Tina off balance and into Luke.

"I am so…." She was cut off as soon as she saw horror on Luke's face. A sudden roar came from behind them. Luke grabbed Tina and pulled her into the trees. Tina did not have time to say see anything as Luke kept pulling her farther into the woods.

"Don't stop Tina."

"What was that Luke?"

"A Dragon."

Tina's heart froze. She had only heard of Dragons in stories and seen them in pictures. What was one doing here. Luke stoped and pulled Tina against himself. They both stood panting, trying to catch their breath.

"We need to get back to May and Lue and get out of here as fast as we can. There can be no stopping till we get to the cabin. Do you understand."

Tina just stood there shaking.

"Tina, look at me." He said cupping her face in his hands. "Everything will be okay as long as we get out of here. Do you understand."

Tina shook her head in agreement. A roar from above them broke the silence and then suddenly the dragon landed just behind them, breaking trees and branches as it tried to land in the forest. Luke and Tina ran as fast and hard as they could away from the dragon. They finally reached where May and Lue were tied up and mounted. They urged them away from the danger as fast and hard as they could. Taking flight they moved away from the dragon as it ripped through the woods searching for who knows what. Tina turned and saw a burst of flames shoot out from the forest. Whatever the Dragon was searching for would not last long in that forest.

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><p>Sorry this is a short chapter but I will post Chapter 4 soon to make up for this short chapter.<p> 


	5. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

Philip called over his stone as they were miles from the city.

"Okay guys listen up. We are escorting a child who is from the first line of the kings so she can assume the throne as Christopher's heir. Christopher cannot produce an heir and we fear Maylek will take the throne and cause this country to crumble."

Naylon asked, "Why didn't the first line take the throne in the first place?"

"Well the great-grandfather of Christopher, Monarch Lucas, had two daughters. The oldest was to take the throne when Monarch Lucas passes away. When The oldest daughter was 18 she fell for a common farmer in the country and chose to leave the throne to her sister. The Monarch was furious and had her pronounced dead and was thrown out of the palace. The Monarch was the only one that knew she was still left alive. She had a family and the girl is the only one left from her line"

James asked, "How did you find out all this information?"

"I was asked to research the linage for anyone who had direct line to the throne. I had buried myself in the personal library of the Monarchs and found a secret journal of the late Monarch that had a record of the account."

Mitchell chimed in, "So how are we going to get her to come with us to the capital?"

"The Monarch wishes to just talk to her and see if she is willing to take the responsibility of the throne. Now we do not want to draw unnecessary attention to ourselves seeing as this is a secret mission. Mitchell and I will talk to her once we get to her home. James you will scout while Fin takes the North of the city to keep lookout, Derick will take the west and Naylon will take the east. Keep out of sight unless necessary. We do not want to start a panic."

The group split and as Mitchell and Philip came to where Tina's house was to be located but all they found was a pile of ash. Philip instantly began to panic. What had happened.

He shouted, "How could someone have got here before us."

Drie spoke, "Calm down Philip. There is no body. This means that she could still be alive. Where else did your research say she could be."

Philip took a deep breath as he thought, "She works for a training farm."

Mitchell chimed in, "Let's check there before we assume anything."

The two quickly mounted and headed to the training farm. They landed in the field causing Flairbirds to scatter. Philip approached a man who stood in the yard mouth open.

"Where is Tina."

The man shut his mount and began stuttering, "Shhhhhhe wwwent tttracking."

Philip grabbed the man by the collar and lifted him in the air. "Where?" He said with force.

"North of here a days ride, by Flairbird, near the lake."

Philip dropped the man in the dirt and moved back to Drie.

**Luke and Tina**

The trip back to the cabin was uneventful. Tina and Luke both landed next to the cabin and dismounted. Tina gathered the bags from Lue and May while Luke took the saddles and equipment to the barn. Lu and May shook their feathers and ran off into the open fields. Tina walked into the kitchen with Lucky and JoJo.

She placed the bags onto the table and plopped down into the chair. She leaned back and let out a sigh. Luke walked in and sat down across the table from Tina. He placed his elbows on the table and allowed his face to rest in the palms of his hands. He looked over to Tina as she spoke,

"What was that?"

Luke paused then said, "That was a wild dragon"

Tina was shocked.

"I thought they were only in the wasteland of the north. Why would one be so far from there?"

"I have no clue."

"Do you think it will follow us here?"

Luke laughed ,"Do I look like a dragon expert. We really should leave the matter alone. Lets get something to eat for lunch then leave. The quicker we are away from that creature the better."

Before Tina could speak Lucky got up from where he was laying and began to growl.

Tina said, "What's wrong Lucky?"

Within seconds JoJo rose in a defensive positions in front of Tina. Suddenly the house started to shake and the windows shattered. Luke grabbed Tina and pulled her down to the floor and under the table. In a split second the roof was hanging in shambles. The table broke and before Tina could react a board hit her and she immediately lost consciousness while pieces of shrapnel continued to bombard her.

Tina slowly regained consciousness, she tried to brush off the boards that had fallen on her back and stand up, but was unable to get up. Tina was pinned. She lay there struggling to get up. Realizing that she could not do anything she tried to look around for help but could barely turn her head. Fear started to cloud Tina's mind, she didn't know if this was the end for her. Suddenly she felt the weight on her back decrease. She could move!

"Can you get up?"

She tried to lift herself up but could not get up on her own. She felt strong arms lift her up on her feet and in a daze she asked,

"What happened?"

She lifted her hand and felt a gigantic bump on the back of her head. The room began to spin and she started to fall backwards. The man caught her again and eased her to the floor and said,

"Whoa, take it easy. It looks like you got a nasty bump and some bruises."

Tina's eyes began to focus and she could finally see who was speaking.

"Who are you?"

"I am Philip. You just sit here for a while. I will get your friend to help you get out of here, while you can."

Tina nodded. She felt Lucky put his head on her lap. She had not noticed him there. Philip laughed,

"Looks like you'll be okay with this guy. Just sit still."

Philip rose and ran towards the mangled front of the house. He disappeared through the door and the room was quiet. Tina felt better after a few minutes and glanced around at what remained of the house. She suddenly remembered Luke. What had happened to him, where was he, was he okay? All these questions caused her head to hurt. She slowly got up, using Lucky to lean on. She slowly walked to the front door, but suddenly ran into Luke. He grabbed Tina and hugged her as tight as possible.

"Thank goodness you're okay! I tried to get you out but I couldn't lift the boards. I ran, with JoJo, to try to get help, but I guess after I left they came to help."

Tina stepped back

"Who helped?"

"The Sky Knights."

A roar interrupted her thoughts. Tina looked up just in time to see the large black dragon dive down from the clouds, with a small green dragon following close behind. The dragons soared through the air dogging each other's blows. The dragons moved closer to the ground and Tina could see that the green dragon had a single rider on its back. This was probably one of the Sky Knights. A white dragon appeared above the tree line and headed into the battle. Tina could not believe her eyes when she saw the man from earlier on the back of the white dragon.

"The Black Dragon was the one we saw in the forest. The man said there are a few other sky knights, but I don't know where they are."

"Will they be okay fighting it?"

"I believe so, but we should get out of here just in case the dragon tries to take another bite at us."

Luke grabbed Tina's hand and let her out of the house and towards Lue. Luke Mounted and urged Lue forward while Tina sat behind him. Tina looked up to see the white dragon let out a stream of fire towards the black dragon. The black dragon roared in anger. Luke kicked Lue to get her going faster and Tina had to grab Luke's waist so she wouldn't fall. Lucky and JoJo ran along the road beside them. Tina watched as they moved farther away from the battle in the sky and towards safety.

* * *

><p>Well this chapter should make up for the short chapter last time. Please enjoy.<p> 


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